I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to material collection vehicles and those vehicles having divided storage bodies and to a loading system including a packing apparatus for charging refuse or recyclables into distinct predetermined storage body compartments in such a multi-compartment collection vehicle, which compartments are further emptied by opening tailgates and tilting the truck body by raising the front of the truck body and producing a dump position. More particularly, this invention relates to an ejection system that assists the gravity induced tilt dumping operation by dislodging material in areas where obstructions might occur. The system typically operates in conjunction with a receiving and packing apparatus having a divided charging hopper wherein dual linear-operating packing panels, each operating within a divided portion of the charging hopper, charge the refuse or recyclables into an associated compartment of the storage body wherein the more remote portion of one storage body compartment is of smaller cross section than the associated charging hopper. In a vertically divided system, the charging hopper and storage body are typically divided using a lowered horizontal separator and an inclined ramp floor segment in the upper storage compartment so as to increase the relative holding capacity of the upper portion of the charging hopper, without significantly decreasing the holding capacity of the lower storage compartment.
II. Discussion of the Related Art
Refuse collection vehicles of the conventional variety generally include a storage compartment, a charging hopper, a loading mechanism, and a compacting mechanism all mounted on the vehicle. If the loading mechanism is of the front or side loading variety, the loading mechanism operates to engage, lift, and empty a container of interest into the open top of an associated charging hopper and the compacting mechanism directs the material from front to rear. When separated waste materials are hauled in designated compartments of the storage body of the collection vehicle, it is desirable to separately compact the material stowed in each compartment to allow a greater volume of material to be hauled.
The charging hopper typically includes a ram or packer panel which operates to pack refuse or recyclable material into the storage compartment. A partitioned charging hopper of a multi-compartment collection vehicle typically has an upper loading hopper separated by a floor and forward wall, and a separate packing system that is operated independently of that of the lower loading hopper. The wall is normally a transverse vertical member that provides a rigid dividing wall that divides the receiving opening or access to the upper hopper (rear) from that of the lower hopper (front).
A divided side loading bucket or top (front loading) tipping device may be used to load segregated, collected materials into the predetermined portions of the charging hopper. When refuse is dumped into the hopper of the vehicle, the rearward portion of refuse contained in the loading bucket may land in the access to the upper hopper and the forward portion is received in the lower hopper. The loading bucket is typically divided or split fore and aft so that a first dedicated portion dumps into the lower hopper and a second dedicated portion dumps into the upper hopper.
A representative example of such a collection vehicle appears in U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,430, issued to Horning et al., which describes a divided vehicle for collecting, hauling, and delivering recyclable materials. The vehicle includes a divided charging hopper having a packer panel associated with the upper portion of the divided charging hopper. A double acting packing cylinder pushes and pulls or reciprocates the packer panel between a forward and aft position. The packing cylinder extends into and through the opening to the lower divided portion requiring material being loaded into the lower portion of the charging hopper to spill over the packing cylinders eventually reducing their useful life.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,484,246 also issued to Horning et al. discloses a similarly divided upper and lower charging hopper compartment. The upper portion of the charging hopper includes a ram that encloses a longitudinally extending packing cylinder. While this avoids exposing the cylinders to corroding refuse, it significantly reduces the holding capacity of the upper portion of the charging hopper.
An improved packing apparatus adapted for receiving and charging refuse or recyclables into preselected storage compartments of a multi-compartment collection vehicle having a multi-compartment storage body mounted to the vehicle and extending longitudinally therealong is fully described in copending application Ser. No. 08/748,649, filed Nov. 14, 1996 and common of inventorship and assignee and which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for any purpose. That system generally includes a divided charging hopper, first and second packers, and first and second means for linearly displacing the corresponding first and second packers.
A loading mechanism of either side loading (grabber or bucket) variety may be attached in communication with the charging hopper and adapted to load the refuse or recyclables into the charging hopper of the packing apparatus. The operation of a side loading bucket is described in greater detail in co-pending application Ser. No. 08/596,731, filed Feb. 5, 1996 now abandoned, and assigned to the same assignee as the present application, the entire disclosure of which is also incorporated herein by reference.
The charging hopper is mountable to the collection vehicle forward of the multi-compartment storage body and adapted to receive material and to charge material into a preselected compartment of the multi-compartment storage body of the vehicle. The charging hopper includes a transverse dividing wall and floor which divide the charging hopper into an upper and lower portion. The upper portion of the multi-compartment charging hopper includes a dropped floor, the storage body having a ramped transition connecting the charging hopper dividing floor, and the floor of the upper storage body compartment, wherein material loaded into the upper portion of the charging hopper is moved up the ramped or sloped floor and into the upper compartment of the storage body. The ramped floor allows the charging hopper dividing floor to be positioned lower relative to the top opening of the charging hopper, thereby generously increasing the holding capacity within the upper portion of the charging hopper.
Separate packer mechanisms are positioned within the lower and upper portions of the charging hopper respectively. Each packer is repeatably linearly displaceable between a stowed and packing position for sequentially packing materials into the corresponding compartment of the multi-compartment storage body.
A side loading grabber mechanism is described in greater detail in co-pending application Ser. No. 08/596,648, filed Feb. 5, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,589, and assigned to the same assignee as the present application, the entire disclosure of which is also incorporated herein by reference. Of course, other mechanisms including front loading mechanisms of known construction may replace the side loading bucket or grabber and the width of the charging hopper adjusted accordingly.
The dropped floor of the upper section of the charging hopper greatly facilitates loading, particularly where the like amounts are charged, both fore and aft, i.e., into both the upper and lower charging hopper compartments. This allows successful optimization of available charging hopper volume without increasing the height of the vehicle to accommodate additional material in the top section. A limitation of this configuration, however, results from the ramping of the floor into the upper storage compartment which, in effect, results in a necking down or reduced cross sectional area producing a constriction of the material moved in from the charging hopper. From time to time, this may result in jamming or difficulty in emptying the upper compartment when the load is dumped by gravity by tilting the vehicle body at the landfill or other receiving site. Accordingly, there remains a need for a device which positively keeps the transition area cleared to prevent clogging during discharge of the load.